Friction lever-latch.



A. J. MOGINN..

FRICTION LEVER LATCH.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 9, 190a.

Patented Dec. 22, 1908.

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FRICTION LEVER LATCH. APPLIOATIONIIILED MAR. 9, 1908.

907,391 Patented Dec. 22, 1908.

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A. J. MOGINN- FRICTION LEVER LATCH. APPLICATION FILED HA3. 9, 190B.

Patented Dec. 22, 1908.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3 WITNESSES WNW/wok W 2 I X -fi hwfi-mmy ARTHUR J.MoGINN, OF KALISPELL, MONTANA.

FRICTION LEVER-LATCH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 22, 1908.

Application filed March 9, 1908. Serial No. 419,859.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR J. MOGINN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Kalispell, in the county of Flathead and State of Montana,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in FrictionLever-Latches, of which the following is a specification.

This invention pertains to lever latches, and applies the frictionprinciple to serve the purpose of latching a lever at any desiredposition. The usual method of latching a lever is by the use of pawlsoperating in a ratchet.

My invention is particularly adapted for the regulation ofthrottle-levers where slight variations of the position of the lever andexactness are required or desired and where safety and practicabilityrequire that the lever shall remain where set until purposely re-set.

Where a pawl and ratchet are used as a lever latch, there is nopossibility of setting the lever to a greater degree of fineness thanthe full length of a ratchet, which often re,

quires the throwing of the lever too far and if set back again thelength of a ratchet, it is not far enough, thereby necessitating thecontinual adjusting and re-adjusting of the lever and at the same timefailing to get a uniform adjustment of the amount of steam or powerrequired or desired or a uniform motion of the machinery. Furthermorepawls are apt to be thrown from the ratchet by the motion and jarring ofthe machinery.

By the use of my friction clutch device I am able to set the lever atany desired location, thereby being enabled to adjust the amount ofsteam or power to be admitted for the moving mechanism, which makes itan easy matter to secure a steady motion and uniform moving of the partsof the machiner and also save the possibility of the lever eing movedfrom its setting by the jarring motions of the machinery.

My invention is particularly desirable for use upon a locomotive engine.I have therefore shown the application of the device to a locomotiveengine lever.

In the path of the throttle-lever and secured to the end of the boilerof the engine by a ball and socket joint or otherwise is a curvedslotted arm. Adjusted to the slot in the arm is an oval shaped clutch soconnected with the lever that when the lever is released the clutch willbind in the slot and when the lever is gripped by the hand of theoperator, the same will be released as hereinafter explained. The forceof an adjustable steel spring is applied to the clutch to give thebinding effect.

In the drawings, Figure 1, is an elevation of-the end of an engineboiler with lever and latch attachments, showing side of the curvedslotted arm and end of clutching de vice, Fig. 2, is an enlargedelevation of the upper end of the lever, showing the adjustable steelspring appliance, Fig. S, is an enlarged elevation of the slotted armtogether with a broke-away portion of the lever and showing the positionof the oval clutch as it relates to the curved slotted arm and thelever, Fig. 4, is an enlarged end elevation of the oval clutch,detached, Fig. 5, is a side elevation of the same, Fig. 6, is anenlarged elevation of the steel spring and Fig. 7, is an end elevationof an engine boiler, showing the end of the curved slotted arm and edgeof the spring and lever. Fig. 8 is a transverse section of the lever anda cross section of the slotted arm, oval clutch and other parts andshows their relation to other features of the mechanism.

In the application of the device to a throttle-lever on a locomotiveengine, as shown in the drawings, a lever 10 is secured to the engineboiler 11 in the usual way. Secured also to the end of the boiler 11 inthe path of the lever 10, by a ball and socket joint, or otherwise, is acurved slotted arm 12. Slidably adjusted in the oblong slot 13 of thecurved arm 12 is the oval friction clutch 14, cast with which is thetapered shaft 15, the end 16 of which is threaded.

In the adjustment of the oval friction brake 14 to the oblong slot 13,the tapered shaft 15 passes through an opening in the lever 10, alsothrough an opening in the arm 17 and the end of the spring 18, a nut 19en gaging the threaded end 16. A rack 20 is secured to the lever 10carrying a threaded shaft 21 adapted to be turned by a thumbscrew 22. Anut 23 with a shoulder 24 engages the threaded shaft 21, the shoulder 24engaging the opening 25 in the lower end of the spring 18 to revent thenut 23 from turning with the t readed shaft 21.

In the adjustment of the tapered shaft 15 through the arm 17 and theupper end of the spring 18, the arm 17 and spring 18 are made to bind onthe tapered surface of the shaft 15, the nut 19 being turned securelyand firmly against the spring 18. A set screw 26 bearing against t eshaft 15 also helps to retain the spring 18 iminovably upon the same.

The relative adjustment of the oval friction brake 14 to the oblong slot13, and the shaft 15 to the arm 17 and spring 18, must be so that whenthe latch 27 is drawn against the top of the lever 10, the oval frictionclutch 14 will slide in the oblong slot 13 and when the latch 27 isreleased and allowed to resume the position shown in Fig. 2, the samewill be turned suffi ciently in the oblong slot 13 by the tension of thespring 18 to in cline the greater diameter of the oval clutch 14crosswise of the oblong slot 13 sufficiently to bind the clutch 14within the slot 13 so that the same will be immovable until the clutchis turned so that its shorter diameter will engage the sides of theoblong slot 13 by the lifting of the latch 27 when the same will againbe allowed to slide in the oblong slot to the position where it isdesired to anchor the same, when the latch 27 may be again released andthe clutch again set in its bearings consisting of the outer edges ofthe oblong slot 13. In order to prevent the slotted arm 12 from spreadinby the outward pressure of the clutch 14, the lever 10 in such aposition that the same will engage the outer surface of the curvedslotted arm 12 and follow the same in the movements of the lever 10backward and forward, serving to bind the slotted arm 12 have secured ayoke 28 to always where the clutch 14 has a tendency to spread the same.

The tension of the spring 18' is regulated by the threaded shaft 21turned by the thumb-screw 22, the threaded shaft 21 passing through theoblong slot 25 in the lower end of the spring 18, the nut 23 beingstationary with the end of the spring 18, so that when the threadedshaft 21 is turned the nut 23 and the lower end of the spring 18 will beconveyed backward or forward or to a greater or less tension as isdesired or required.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and useful anddesire to secure by Letters-Patent, is,

In a lever latch, the combination of a lever with a curved slotted arm,an oval shaped clutch engaging the slot in the arm and being connectedby a shaft to the lever, a tension spring also engaging the shaft, andbeing made adjustable for greater or less strength, a yoke secured tothe lever engaging the outer surface of the curved slotted arm andfollow ing the friction clutch in its movements with in the slotted arm,the oval clutch being adjusted to bind within the slotted arm or bereleased. by means of the lever latch, sub stantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature, in presence of twowitnesses.

ARTHUR J. MoGINN. Witnesses:

C. G. PENOE, W. R. SAMPSON.

